Dirty (2005)

User Rating:

5.5/10   

Director:

Chris Fisher

Writers:

Chris Fisher (written by)
Gil Reavill (written by)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Violence Is A Language People Understand

Plot:

Two gangbangers-turned-cops try and cover up a scandal within the LAPD.

Plot Keywords:

Partners | Gang | Internal Affairs | Police | Drug Dealer

Cast

Frank Alvarez	...	Gangster #1
Clifton Collins Jr.	...	Officer Armando Sancho
Brittany Daniel	...	Tatiana
Keith David	...	Captain Spain
Robert Flores	...	Gangster #4
Aimee Garcia	...	Rita
Cesar Garcia	...	Gangster #3
Nicholas Gonzalez	...	Officer Rodriguez
Cuba Gooding Jr.	...	Salim Adel
Kevin Grevioux	...	Daddy
Wood Harris	...	Brax
Cole Hauser	...	Lieutenant
Wyclef Jean	...	Baine
Pat Healy	...	Ronnie
Tory Kittles	...	Wallace

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, pervasive language, some sexual content and drug use.

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

Spanish | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Finland:K-15 (video rating) (2006) | Australia:MA | Argentina:16 | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #42125) | Singapore:M18 | Norway:15 | Iceland:16 | South Korea:18 | Netherlands:12 (TV version) | Netherlands:16

Filming Locations:

Arclight Cinemas - 6360 W. Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

2710 Inc.

Trivia:

The game that the drug-dealing white "jokers", that according to Baine doesn't fit the profile, is playing when Sancho and Adel busts through the door is Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004) (VG), a game in which actor Clifton Collins Jr. (Sancho) does one of the main characters voices.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Officer Armando Sancho: You see things more clearly when you're dead.

Movie Connections:

References Taxi Driver (1976)

Soundtrack:

I'll Remember You

Pointless and Deceptive

In a Los Angeles dominated by violent gangs and a corrupt LAPD Precinct, the dirty Officer Armando Sancho (Clifton Collins Jr.) is haunted by his guilty since an innocent old man was accidentally killed in an operation with his also dirty partner Salim Adel (Cuba Gooding Jr.). The Internal Affairs is pressing Sancho, who feels split between the loyalty to his mates and his conscience, and he has to make a statement at 6:00 PM. When his superiors Captain Spain (Keith David) and his Lieutenant (Cole Hauser) assign the two cops for an operation dealing drugs apprehended by the police and stored as evidence with a powerful drug dealer, Sancho feels that something is wrong and they have been framed.

"Dirty" has a promising beginning, with the chain of thoughts of Officer Sancho about corruption ("With power came responsibility; with responsibility came opportunity; with opportunity came corruption, a plague where everybody gets sick"). His dramatic feelings, haunted by the ghost of an innocent man and feeling awful as a finger-pointing rat, give the sensation that Sancho is a rich contradictory character to be developed. However, the story is pointless, showing a hopeless society in a city dominated by gangs, lost youth and corrupt police force, but without any message in the end. I had never expected the redemption of any character, but I found the unpleasant plot a caricature and very manipulative view of the LAPD. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Dirty – O Poder da Corrupção" ("Dirty – The Power of the Corruption")